Alone

A poem on loneliness for the ongoing Alone contest

Alone

 

She sat still like made of stone

On a bench in the park

Dusk’s morose fingers

Blanketing her countenance

 

Her face she would not lift

To hide a stream of silent tears

An ocean of misery

Emanating from her soul

 

Countless thoughts tormented

Her mind every second

As blank eyes stared

Deep into nothingness

 

Mom had gone this year

Dad the year before last

Leaving her to cope

With the ravages of the past

 

No roof to shelter her head

As even taking away their home

Was not enough to satiate

The greedy belly of the banks

 

Hunger her constant companion

Fear a permanent resident of

Every atom of her being

Cornered by emptiness outside and within

 

No loving arms to run into

No one to hide behind

Not a shoulder to lean on

At life’s most difficult bend

 

Just her and the darkness

Entwined in grief

Hoping endlessly for

The miracle of light